


a house built by a doctor to the stars

by fakeheaux



Category: American Horror Story, American Horror Story: Murder House, One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, American Horror Story References, Brunette Niall, Innuendo, M/M, Mild Language, Mild Racism, Orphans, Twins, cherry innuendo to be more specific, dude being creepy, technically
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-19
Updated: 2018-02-19
Packaged: 2019-03-20 13:42:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,731
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13718901
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fakeheaux/pseuds/fakeheaux
Summary: "There's no way you live there," Zayn laughs, brows pulling together. "That's Murder House, bro, no way."Niall shrugs. "Murder House to you. Murder Home to me."or niall is the baby of spirits ben and vivien harmon, raised by an eclectic group of ghosts





	a house built by a doctor to the stars

Niall was four when he realizes his parents are not normal. They never leave the house, never seem to sleep, never eat or drink like he does. Every few months or so, until he was about twelve, he would have to empty his room of all his furniture because some other family was moving in, and his parents wouldn't do anything about it. Eventually he learned to keep his belongings to a minimum, just a few bags and boxes that he never unpacks. But it wasn't until his thirteenth birthday that he learned what it really is about his mom, dad, sister, and dozen or so others who help in raising him that's so different.

It didn't surprise him as much as one might expect.

Now, he mostly does for himself. Ben managed to convince Constance from next door to scrounge up some paperwork, give Niall a real, tangible identity, and so he goes to school, and he works, and he does the things a normal kid does, bar a few items. He just doesn't come home to a normal family.

"Niall, I've told you; if you're going to sleep upstairs you have to stay away from the windows," Vivien says, appearing behind him. He doesn't jump. He stopped jumping when he was a kid. 

He doesn't turn around, either, still idly strumming his guitar as he watches the people outside his window. "Not like they'll see me and think I'm real." He shrugs. "I'm just another ghost in the Murder House."

Sighing, Vivien sits next to him, crossing her legs. "You got your musical talent from me, you know. Your father can't hold a tune, or find a rhythm, or even stick to a beat to save his life." She brushes some hair away from his face. Unlike Violet, Niall wasn't born with light hair, but he did go through a small stint where he dyed it blond to match his sister's. Then she told him he looked like Tate so he stopped. Tate isn't exactly his favorite person. "You're not a ghost, baby. Which is why you need to be careful." Her hand freezes in his hair. "Just - don't get so close, alright? I just want to make sure you stay safe."

Niall laughs, but not unkindly. "I live in a house full of ghosts, ma. Two of them are murderers, and there's a monster living in the basement. Pretty sure I'm safe." He looks over at her. "And there's you."

She hums, raising her brows at him. "Yeah, there is me. And while I may not be a murderer I am your mother, and I will still smack you if I think you deserve it." Just to prove her point, she gives his cheek a little slap. He laughs, unable to help it. "Hey. Tomorrow's Halloween. You know what that means?"

"We all go trick or treating?" Niall asks, looking back out the window. "Can't. I work tomorrow night."

Vivien laughs, somewhat sadly. "You know, Violet didn't have a job when she was still alive."

Shaking his head, Niall stands. "Violet didn't live by herself, surrounded by spirits who were unemployed and couldn't leave the property. I know you don't need to eat, mom, but I do. And Constance made it pretty clear by the time I hit puberty that she was only going to support one of your sons."

Oh yeah, there's that too. Niall has a twin brother, who lives next door, and just so happens to be the antichrist.

What a small world they live in.

\---

"I'm just saying, dude, if you go on inside the house you _will_ see ghosts." Niall looks over from where he's wiping down the counter. There's two boys, both heavily tattooed, sitting in one of the booths. Niall didn't even notice when they came in. The one who spoke shrugs. "The tour doesn't cover half of what actually goes on in that house."

The other boy shrugs, taking a sip of his drink. "I dunno, I just don't see what the big deal is. If there really ghosts, why hasn't there been an exorcism yet?"

His friend scoffs, looking totally disbelieving. "You can't exorcise a _house_ , Zayn, okay, that only works for people. And they're not demons, they're ghosts. Ghosts don't posses people, contrary to popular belief."

"Okay, well," the boy - Zayn - shrugs exaggeratedly. "Point is I'm not going. If the house really is haunted, then we shouldn't mess with it. Spirits aren't something you mess with." He takes a sip, shaking his head. "Especially not on Halloween."

Niall looks away as the bell above the door dings, and in walks Ben and Vivien, Violet trailing along behind them like the skulky teenager she is and always will be. Smiling, Niall waves them over to a table so he can serve them. Vivien orders a simple salad, still adamant about her organic lifestyle despite being dead, Ben orders a double cheeseburger and fries, and Violet simply orders a milkshake. Niall's gonna slip her an extra cherry.

Once the order's put in, Niall tends to his other tables, making sure the customers are fine before he slacks off and sits with his family.

"How's the shift, so far?" Ben asks, wrapping an arm around Vivien, who smiles at him. Niall shrugs, hanging his towel over his shoulder.

"Been pretty easy," he says, glancing around the almost empty diner. "People don't really start coming in until they're done trick or treating, and then there's a little bit of a slow patch before all the parties finish." He smiles crookedly. "Honestly, the drunk college kids are my favorites."

Ben laughs, wiping a hand over his eyes. "God, I remember college. Those were the days."

"Pretty sure you just used college as an excuse to be a minor alcoholic, dad," Violet says, smirking. Ben shrugs, not denying it.

Laughing, Niall looks around the diner again to make sure everything is going smoothly, but stops when he notices one of the boys from earlier staring at Vivien, eyes wide. Clearing his throat, Niall stands. "I'm gonna go get your food, and then I think you should go. If you stay in once place for too long you might get recognized." Vivien frowns at him, opening her mouth to speak. "No, just. Those guys behind me were talking about Murder House earlier, and I think one of them might have already recognized you, alright?" He quirks a smile. "Love you, though."

Sighing, Vivien nods. "Love you, too. Go on, then, earn a living."

Niall nods, heading back to the kitchen to actually do his job. His family eats fairly quickly once the realize that, yeah, that boy from earlier might have actually recognized them. He's pulled out his phone, holding it up in their direction and pointing between it and them, pointing something out to Zayn. Niall grits his teeth, irritated, and walks over.

"Hey, um," he shifts on his feet, brows furrowed, trying to figure out how to say this without sounding weird. "I don't wanna make any assumptions or whatever, but if you're taking pictures of that table over there I'm gonna need you to stop. Mostly because it's an invasion of privacy, but also because it's weird to take pictures of strangers."

The boy stares up at him with clear blue eyes, mouth hanging open. He looks caught in the act, and Niall raises his brows.

"No, um, I was just trying to show my friend something," he says. When Niall doesn't back down, he sighs and shows Niall his phone screen, where a Wikipedia page has been pulled up. There's a picture of Niall's family, beside the title _Harmon Family_ and a block of text. "Okay, so you know the Harmon family? From Murder House?" Niall shakes his head, brows still raised. "Oh god, alright, so there's this house a couple blocks from here and a whole bunch of people have died in it, right, and the last family that died in it looks just like that family over there, which is what I was trying to show Zayn. Look." He zooms in on the picture, pointing between it and the Harmons. Niall laughs, shaking his head.

"You do realize it's Halloween, right?" he shrugs. "They probably did that on purpose. Do you want your check now, or I should I wait?" He tilts his head innocently, eyes wide, and the boy deflates, sighing.

"We'll take it now, I guess," he says quietly. Niall nods, and goes to get it for them. When he passes Vivien, he gives her a subtle wink.

Sometimes you gotta take an extra step to protect your family, even if they are already dead.

\---

It's almost the end of Niall's shift when  _he_ comes in. Niall isn't even facing the door, is actually in the kitchen, when his blood runs cold and the feeling of cold water being poured down his back sends him into a fit of shivers. He's lucky no one is watching; they might have called the cops with how strong the tremors are.

Swallowing hard, Niall comes out to the front to see Constance arm in arm with Michael, both laughing over something they said before walking in. Michael stops when he sees Niall, smiling cruelly. Constance frowns, following his line of sight, then scoffs.

"Come, boy, get us a table," she commands, waving a hand. Jaw clenching, Niall leads them to the cleanest - and newest, and least used - table in the corner, the only one he knows will meet at least a quarter of Constance's expectations. When Jade, another one of their servers, comes their way to serve her table he waves her off, shaking his head. Brows raised, Jade backs off with her hands held up. _The tip is still mine_ , she mouths, and he nods, knowing Constance won't give him a penny more than she needs to - if she even ends up paying her bill - and that he'll have to give Jade some of his own money from tonight.

Clearing his throat, Niall pulls out his notepad. "What can I get you two?" he asks politely. Michael snickers.

"What's the least disgusting thing you've got here, brother?" he says, arm raised onto the chair beside him. Constance laughs. "I know this isn't the greatest establishment, but it's the only thing open at this time. Sometimes sacrifices have to be made, no?"

Niall grits his teeth. "It's an American-style diner, Michael. There's nothing here that isn't disgusting by your standards."

"Which is not a bad thing, dear," Constance says, patting Michael's hand. "You're a good boy of high stature; the food you eat should reflect that, of course."

"Of course," Michael says, grinning. He shrugs, looking back at Niall. "Just get me a milkshake. Three cherries, please."

Niall jots it down. "Cherries are extra, just to let you know. And for you, Constance?"

"Aww," Michael coos. "You won't slip your twin brother a few cherries for free? I know you let our dear sister have one. Did you even charge our wonderful mother and her husband for their meal? It's not like they have jobs or money. How could they possibly have paid?"

Ignoring him, Niall turns more fully to Constance. "What can I get you, Constance?"

"Don't ignore him, you stupid son of a bitch," she snaps. Niall stares at her, not backing down. He doesn't look away from her as Michael stands, nearing him. Michael is taller than him, of course, being the better developed sibling, and Niall knows he's stronger, too. He's not too keen on finding out just how much.

"Niall," Michael says gently, mouth to Niall's ear. He can feel Michael's breath rustling his hair. "I really want those extra cherries, but I don't have enough cash on me to pay for them. In fact, I don't think I have any cash on me at all. Please, brother. Do your twin a favor and foot the bill for him."

Turning away, Niall shakes his head. "I can't." He hisses as Michael grabs his arm, squeezing. Michael gets back in his face, nose brushing his cheek.

"Niall," he says, still soft enough to tempt a priest, "I _need_ those cherries. I don't think you understand how much. And you would just make me  _so happy_ if you could give them to me. I just," he pauses, breathing in deeply through his nose, "really love cherries."

"Um, Niall?" a voice interrupts, and Michael turns to look at the intruder, nose pressing into Niall's hair. "I just...was gonna walk you home, but if you're busy..." the voice trails off, and Niall bites down on his tongue as Michael's hand squeezes impossibly tighter. He pulls away roughly, turning to see the source of the voice and surprised to see Zayn, the boy from earlier.

Clearing his throat, Niall tears the ticket with Michael's order off his pad and crumples it in his hand. "No, um. I'll be right out, I just have to grab my stuff." He turns to Michael. "You should go. If you want some cherries I'm sure you can find them at the store. I need you to leave now."

Chuckling darkly, Michael holds his hands up in defeat. "Alright, dear brother. But I do think you owe me one. Can't give your family special treatment and just leave me out, right?" He holds his arm out to Constance, who has a hand pressed to her mouth. "Mother." She takes it, and they go. Niall doesn't breathe until the door has closed behind them, and when it does he lets out a breath so deep it has him doubling over, hands on his knees.

"Are you okay?" Zayn asks, concern etching his voice. Niall nods, taking deep breaths.

"Yeah, um," he swallows, shaking his head, "yeah, he's just. Intense."

Zayn nods, staring wide eyed at the door. "Yeah, I saw. Um, is he really your brother?"

Niall straightens, reaching behind himself to untie his apron. Zayn was suspiciously on-time; his shift is over in a few minutes. "Yeah, we're fraternal twins. Long story." He waves a hand at Zayn's expression, closing his eyes briefly. Every encounter with Michael leaves Niall shaken, despite having lived beside him and gone to school with him literally all his life.

"Well, um," Zayn bites his lip. "I mostly came over here to get him away from you, but now I think I really should walk you home. If that's okay, of course."

Way past caring, Niall shrugs. "If you really want to." He turns and heads into the kitchen without waiting for an answer, clocking out and grabbing his things. He peels a few bills away from his own meager stack and hands them to Jade, giving her a kiss goodbye on the cheek. She pats his bum as he walks out, calling out a bye. Niall meets Zayn at the door, giving him a tight smile and nod as Zayn holds the door open for him.

"So, um...are you sure you're okay?" Zayn asks, glancing at Niall out of the corner of his eye. Niall shrugs, hesitating a moment before he realizes Zayn is following him, not the other way around.

"Michael's a freak; I'll survive," he mutters, digging his hands into his jacket pockets. He coughs once, squinting at him. "Didn't you and your friend leave like...hours ago?"

Zayn's cheeks turn pink, and he reaches up to scratch at his neck. "Yeah, but I just...wanted to come back, I guess."

Niall keeps squinting. "Why?"

Laughing, Zayn shakes his head. "Wanted to talk to the cute waiter who told my friend off, didn't I?" Niall freezes, and Zayn's a few steps ahead of him when he realizes that Niall's fallen behind. He turns, eyes wide. "I'm sorry, was that inappropriate? I can fuck off if you want, it's fine, I'll just go -"

"No," Niall says quickly. "Um, it's fine, really. It's just...no one's ever really called me cute before, have they?" He laughs, catching up to Zayn. "That sounded a little bitter...I promise I'm not."

"Nah, I get it," Zayn says, smiling. They walk in silence for a bit, before Zayn holds out his hand and says, "I'm Zayn."

Niall takes it, smiling sheepishly. "I know. I heard you and your friend talking earlier."

Zayn laughs, nodding. "Yeah, that's Louis. He's, um. He's absolutely obsessed with Murder House, in case you didn't notice. Once that family you sat down with walked in he was stuck to his phone, trying to look up everything he could about the Harmons. God, that guy is insane. He's been on the Eternal Darkness tour so many times I've lost count. He started in high school, and just hasn't let up. He's actually majoring in film production just so he can start his own ghost hunting show." He closes his mouth, blushing. "I'm talking too much, sorry."

"No, it's fine," Niall says. "Are you in college too?" Zayn nods, smiling.

"I'm majoring in graphic design," he says. "I'm actually working on a short film that might go to Cannes, which is...so great, honestly." He grins to himself for a moment before turning back to Niall. "Are you in school right now?"

Niall nods. "Yeah, I'm at the community college a couple miles from here. Couldn't really stand to leave home, so. And it's cheaper, which is always great."

Zayn laughs, nodding. "I totally get that. I'd probably be going to there too if I hadn't gotten any scholarships. My mom cried so hard when I moved into my dorm. Ridiculous. I mean, I cried too, but my point remains."

"Yet another reason I went with the community college," Niall laughs. "My mom's already super protective, and if I had left she'd be so stressed."

"Was, um, was that blonde lady your mom? Or, your grandma?" Zayn asks, tentative.

Niall snorts. "Nah, she's Michael's grandmother." When Zayn gives him a weird look, he explains. "It's a  _really_ rare occurrence, but we're only half siblings. When a woman has sex with two different guys during the same ovulation period there's a very slim chance they can each actually end up getting her pregnant. It's the main reason we look nothing alike; we only have half the same set of genes." Zayn's peculiar expression doesn't go away. "I promise it's possible, okay, it's just super rare."

"Alright, then," Zayn says, choking out a laugh.

They keep talking, walking slowly. It was extremely late when they left the diner, and the sky is turning a dusky purple where the sun is starting to come up on the horizon. Eventually they make it to Niall's street, and he can see the ghosts trickling back to the house slowly. They look so depressed, Niall hopes for the first time ever that they can't actually be seen. He used to love the fact that anyone could see them if they wanted, but now, with Zayn, all he wants is for them to be invisible.

He stops in front of the gates to the house, rocking on his feet. "Well. This is me."

Zayn's brows jump, and he looks at the house. "What?"

"I live here," Niall says, shrugging.

"There's no way you live there," Zayn laughs, brows pulling together. "That's _Murder House_ , bro, no way."

Niall shrugs. "Murder _House_ to you. Murder _Home_ to me."

Speechless, Zayn quickly pokes Niall in the stomach. Hard.

"What the hell, man?" Niall says, pulling away. He can't help the laugh that bursts out of him, and Zayn giggles with him, albeit somewhat uncomfortably.

"I'm sorry, I just," he waves a hand at the house. "They say that place is haunted, and the current owners don't even live there. They moved out because they claimed there were 'evil spirits' bothering them."

Nodding, Niall glances back at the house, spotting Vivien in one window. He gives a small wave, and she smiles. He turns back to Zayn, who's staring with his mouth hanging open. "Yup. Those would be my parents, sister, and some other people who aren't related to me." He shrugs. "I'm not pulling a prank on you. And if you think I'm insane, that's fine. But I'm not. And I would be more than willing to tell you the story, but I've been working all night and I'm pretty tired, so." He holds out a hand. "I'll see you again?"

Mouth still hanging open, Zayn shakes his hand without looking away from the house. "Sure. Do you have a phone, or...?"

"Nah," Niall says, "but you're welcome at the diner anytime. I usually work the late shift, sometimes I'm there all day on Saturdays. Usually off on Thursdays."

"Alright," Zayn says, finally looking at him again. He laughs, once. "Nice to meet you, Niall."

He leaves, walking backwards down the street and still waving at Niall until he runs into a trash can someone's put out, almost falling over. He straightens himself sheepishly as Niall cackles, waving one more time before walking the right way. Shaking his head and smiling to himself, Niall enters the gates. He's made it halfway across the lawn when he feels it again. The tremors are worse this time, lasting almost a full minute before he's calmed down enough to glance at where Michael is lounging on the roof of his house, staring at Niall with a small, pleased smile on his face. Gritting his teeth, Niall gives him the finger and enters the house.

"You shouldn't be talking to that boy," Tate says, appearing beside him. He ignores Tate, climbing up the steps quickly. He really is tired. "I'm serious, Niall, he might hurt you. My mother always told me that the men who mark themselves are the worst ones, especially if they're, you know," he looks around the house, lowering his voice, "colored."

"Go away, Tate," Niall says, not looking at him. Tate scoffs, lip curling.

"Low blow, dude," he says, and disappears.

When Niall makes it to his room, he shuts the door and locks it, even though he knows it won't make a difference. He sets his stuff down, changes into his pajamas, and lies down on his makeshift bed of an old twin mattress and torn blankets. He'll shower when he wakes up. At least he doesn't have class.

Hopefully he'll get to see Zayn again soon.

**Author's Note:**

> so like...this a thing that i did. i dunno i started ahs the other day and i just finished season one but i still had questions so i decided to answer them on my own. just an fyi, niall and michael would be fraternal twins considering the fact they have different dads, so...ya
> 
> title is from the murder hour tour thing
> 
> i am on tumblr at flickrseshions, if you wanna check me out. no pressure tho


End file.
